Ducks fire Carlyle after victory, hire Boudreau

Nov. 30, 2011

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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Randy Carlyle looks toward the scoreboard during the third period of the Ducks' 4-1 victory over Montreal on Wednesday night. The Ducks fired Carlyle after the game and announced that they had replaced him with former Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau.

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Ryan Getzlaf of the Ducks celebrates a goal against the Montreal Canadiens in the first period at Honda Center. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Bruce Boudreau was hired by the Ducks just two days after he was fired by the Washington Capitals. Boudreau led the Capitals to four consecutive division titles, but they failed to advance beyond the second round of the playoffs and were off to a bad start this season. BILL KOSTROUN, AP FILE PHOTO

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Ryan Getzlaf of the Ducks shoots the puck wide of goaltender Peter Budaj of the Montreal Canadiens in the first period at Honda Center. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Andrei Kostitsyn of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates a goal against the Ducks in the first period. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Erik Cole (72) of the Montreal Canadiens is checked into the boards by Nate Guenin of the Ducks in the first period at Honda Center. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Devante Smith-Pelly of the Ducks celebrates a goal against the Montreal Canadiens in the second period at Honda Center. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Ryan Getzlaf of the Ducks checks Andrei Kostitsyn of the Montreal Canadiens into the boards in the second period. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

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Andrei Kostitsyn, right, of the Montreal Canadiens is pursued by Corey Perry of the Ducks in the second period at Honda Center. JEFF GROSS, GETTY IMAGES

Randy Carlyle looks toward the scoreboard during the third period of the Ducks' 4-1 victory over Montreal on Wednesday night. The Ducks fired Carlyle after the game and announced that they had replaced him with former Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau.

The most successful coach in franchise history was fired only minutes after his team finally won, ending a seven-game losing streak.

In Carlyle's place, the Ducks hired Bruce Boudreau, who was just fired himself on Monday by Washington.

Boudreau won the 2007-08 Jack Adams award as the NHL's coach of the year and led the Capitals to the 2009-10 Presidents' Trophy. His teams in Washington were 201-88-40 and won Southeast Division titles in all four seasons he finished there.

“This was an extremely difficult decision,” Ducks general manager Bob Murray said in a statement. “Randy is a terrific head coach, and did a tremendous job for us for six-plus seasons. We thank him greatly for his hard work and dedication to our franchise, not the least of which was a Stanley Cup championship.

Along with Carlyle, assistant coaches Dave Farrish and Mike Foligno also were fired, as was video coordinator Joe Trotta.

Carlyle, 55, signed a contract extension through the 2013-14 season in August. The deal included a raise for this year, meaning Carlyle was dismissed only 24 games after being rewarded for his work.

He was 273-182-61 in 516 career games with the Ducks, compiling the most victories and highest winning percentage in club history. He led the team to the franchise's only Stanley Cup in 2007.

But in the four seasons since claiming the title, the Ducks won only one playoff series for Carlyle.

Then, after opening this season with a 4-1 record, the team tailed off badly. The Ducks' 4-1 victory Wednesday ended a seven-game winless streak. They had won only twice in their previous 18 games.

Entering the night, the Ducks ranked 29th in the NHL in points, ahead of only Columbus. Their skid had led to wide-spread speculation about Carlyle's future and the possibility of a major trade.

At least half of that talk will now cease.

Though successful, Carlyle was not the most popular coach among his players. He was known for his no-nonsense, old-school style, which didn't always mesh with the team's younger players.

“At this time, we simply felt a new voice was needed,” Murray's statement continued. “Bruce is a proven winner with a great track record, and we are optimistic we can turn this season around under his leadership.”

Boudreau, 56, became the fastest coach in modern-day NHL history to win 200 games, doing so Nov. 21. He also picked up more victories (184) in his first 300 NHL games than any coach.

But like Carlyle, Boudreau's career has been marked by recent postseason failings. His Capitals teams won only two playoff series.

He also has clashed with his players, only more noticeably. In a game this month against the Ducks, in fact, Boudreau had a celebrated run-in on the bench with Washington star Alex Ovechkin.

Before joining the Capitals, Boudreau spent nine seasons as an AHL coach, including a Calder Cup championship with Hershey in 2006. He spent four years with Manchester (Kings affiliate) and two with Lowell (Kings affiliate) before going to Hershey.

A native of Toronto, Boudreau played eight seasons in the NHL, first with Toronto and then with Chicago.

Brad Lauer, an assistant at Syracuse (AHL) was hired to be one of Boudreau's assistants with the Ducks. Another assistant coach will be added.

Boudreau will be formally introduced as the Ducks' eighth coach at a news conference Thursday.

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